It’s the start of a NEW YEAR and resolutions are being made! If your goal this year is to lose weight and overall start living a healthier lifestyle, then follow these tips on how to guarantee weight loss!
- GET RID OF THE JUNK. The holidays are over and we are in junk food overload. Number 1 tip for a healthy lifestyle is to get 2016 started off on the right foot is get rid of the junk! Clear your pantry, fridge, candy dishes and counter tops of all the high sugar snacks!
- PLAN AND PREP MEALS. Now that you have given your house a good detoxing, get to planning! You can help guarantee your success on this healthy living journey when you have a weekly meal plan-of-action! Go to the Blue Sky MD Pinterest page for some good recipes, make your grocery list, go shopping and get prepping! Keep it simple. One week at a time!
- JOURNAL. We all need to be held accountable and the food diary is a great way to make sure you stay on track! You will also be learning about the foods you are putting in your body, which is important for long term weight loss maintenance! Write down what you eat (the good, the bad and the ugly), the serving sizes and how you feel after you eat specific foods. Which foods help you satiate hunger, and which ones ramp up your appetite?
- EAT REGULARLY. No one likes to be hangry. So how do we prevent ourselves from getting to the point of poor decision making due to our ravenous mindset? Eat consistently. Try to eat every 3-4 hours. Snack on things like nuts, cheese sticks, raw veggies and hummus, boiled eggs, etc.
- EAT SMARTER. Weight loss comes down to simple math: calories in cannot exceed the amount of calories out. High-calorie foods, which you will only be able to have a few bites, will leave your belly empty and unsatisfied. Eat smarter by choosing low-calorie foods like vegetables (EAT THE RAINBOW), high-fiber foods like whole grains, and foods high in protein. These foods will keep you feeling full, preventing those nagging hunger pangs.
- DON’T FEEL DEPRIVED. When starting on what many call a diet, we have a tendency to restrict ourselves so much we wind up feeling angry and deprived of the comfort foods we love. Now can you eat a diet solely of pizza and lose weight? No. However, there are great alternative options to help you have those “comfort foods” we all enjoy. Try making a pizza crust out of cauliflower or lasagna in a spaghetti squash (yes, really!).
- LEARN DIFFERENCE BETWEEN EATING OUT OF BOREDOM AND HUNGER. Do you find yourself always longing for an after dinner snack? Ask yourself this, are you hungry or are you bored? To avoid eating out of boredom come up with a non-food activity to distract yourself, like adult coloring books, picking up knitting or doing a puzzle. Don’t let boredom kick your diet to the curb!
- EXERCISE. Yep, we all know exercise is the other piece to the puzzle. It comes easy to some and others it’s like pulling teeth. The most important tips for a healthy lifestyle that we can offer when it comes to exercise is find something you LOVE TO DO! You will stick with it and hopefully look forward to doing it! One hour of exercise daily is only 4% of your day! Limited on time? That’s fine, try doing some 15-20min HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training) exercises. Check some out on our Blue Sky MD Pinterest page!
- SLEEP. Your body needs time to recharge and that’s where sleep comes in! Being sleepy throughout the day can make us eat more sugar to try and stay awake or possibly even make us skip the gym because we are too tired. These behaviors will only slow your progress! Trouble sleeping? Try cutting electronics off earlier and no alcohol or sugar before bed. If that still doesn’t help, you might need to have your hormones checked. We can help you there as well. Visit our Blue Sky MD Hormone page for more information.
- GIVE IT TIME. To guarantee weight loss, don’t rush your weight loss or set unrealistic goals! It takes 21 days to begin to retrain our brains to these new habits and behaviors we are working to put into place. So be patient and know that to safely lose weight and keep it off, you’ll only drop one to two pounds a week. Progress is progress, celebrate each success and set small goals daily!
If you are still not sure how to get started, we can help!
Contact us today to set-up your consultation!
